Greg Norman and Jack Nicklaus were close friends once upon a time, but the Australian’s leading role in the formation of LIV Golf seemed to change all of that.
Norman spearheaded the inception of LIV Golf back in June 2022 and ever since then Nicklaus has been well-known for his criticisms of the Saudi-backed golf league.
Nicklaus was actually a huge fan of Norman’s golf game, and the pair remained close after their respective playing careers ended.
However, things clearly turned sour after LIV emerged onto the professional golf scene in 2022.
Nicklaus has been highly critical of LIV Golf and, indeed, the players who chose to jump ship from the PGA Tour to join the tour.
And something the Golden Bear said about the burgeoning new golf league back in 2022 really got Norman’s back up.
Greg Norman called Jack Nicklaus a ‘hypocrite’ regarding LIV comments
Norman has never shied away from defending himself in the face of criticism, or LIV Golf for that matter.
And he made his feelings about Nicklaus very clear indeed after the 18-time major champion passed comment on LIV just after the new golf league was formed.
Ahead of The Open Championship in 2022, Nicklaus was asked about how his relationship with Norman could change following LIV’s inception.
Nicklaus said: “Let me just sum this up with a couple of words,’’ Nicklaus said. “First of all, Greg Norman is an icon in the game of golf. He’s a great player. We’ve been friends for a long time, and regardless of what happens, he’s going to remain a friend. Unfortunately, he and I just don’t see eye-to-eye in what’s going on. I’ll basically leave it at that.’’
And Norman was not happy one little bit when he heard those remarks.
The Australian spoke to The Washington Post three years ago and made it very clear why he thought Nicklaus was nothing more than a hypocrite.
“Jack’s a hypocrite,’’ Norman said. “When he came out with those comments, I’m thinking: Jack must have a short memory.’’
The two-time major champion’s comments were in response to a letter which Nicklaus supposedly wrote to the LIV Golf hierarchy after being offered a lucrative ambassador role believed to be worth around $100 million.
Norman vented his fury at Nicklaus, saying: “Quote-unquote, he said: ‘This is good for our game. If it’s good for the game of golf, it’s good by me’. “So you want the facts? You’ve got the facts. Know what you said before you open your mouth.’’
Norman certainly wasn’t holding back there. In fairness to him, though, he has a point, if Nicklaus really did say in the letter what the Great White Shark claims he did.
Greg Norman angers golf fans after leaving LIV Golf
Norman officially parted ways with LIV last month, after spending three years as CEO of the newly-formed golf league.
Scott O’Neil took over his role in January of this year and has already made some positive strides forward.
LIV lost over $1 billion during Norman’s tenure and O’Neil’s main remit will be to turn that worrying financial situation around as soon as possible.
Norman has recently explained how difficult his role at LIV Golf was, and golf fans reacted angrily.
Many believe that Norman caused an overly disruptive influence on the game of professional golf due to his role in LIV’s emergence onto the scene.
It must be said though, without LIV Golf, the players on the PGA Tour would not be playing for the money that they are now.
It’s foolish to suggest that the Saudi-backed golf league hasn’t forced the PGA Tour higher ups to improve their product and that can only be a good thing for the professional game as far as I’m concerned.
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